Vacation Travel Rent Or Use Your Vehicle
- Thread starter Zee09
- Start date
I would drive my own vehicle, I can't justify the cost for something I already own. Our cars are old, 2010 and 2012, but I trust them. Further, I may have to drive our 2008 Honda home from SoFlo in the near future.
My 40 cents/mile (minus fuel) operating cost is a guess, hopefully the median or average of lower and higher examples.
"$80 x 7 out of pocket. Which you really didn't have to spend." While you may not pay 40 cents/mile every week, at some point the cash outlay happens: depreciation, insurance, maintenance/repairs, loan interest, and state license/registration fees. A lot of people here that pay cash for used cars and maintain them themselves under estimate cost of ownership for the more average person.
Just throwing up some numbers for comparison. I especially would like better data for my 40 cents/mile guess.
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JHZR2
Staff member
I agree. The road trip is part of the fun.
The main concern I’d have with renting is if you are allowed to take it beyond a certain area. Rental agencies have all kinds of weird rules.
I’ve never considered it. I have my own vehicle for a reason. I can see the benefit though. Wear and tear on somebody else’s vehicle, maintenance done by someone else, potentially bigger/newer vehicle than what you have. It’s not a bad idea if the price is right.
We drive our own and make stops for fun events along the way. Even if it takes longer. The Sienna does great on long road trips. It’s like a rolling apartment that gets 35 mpg.
Yes, I rent on long trips.
Don’t want my personal car to possibly breakdown or some idiot hit me so far away from home.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Most of my vehicles are classified as beaters by some on BITOG; I love taking them on super long road trips.
Zero depreciation......
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GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Although not currently, but historically I have rented vehicles likely over 100 time per year for over 20 consecutive years
I have posted on BITOG some of the pictures of waiting in line for rental cars. I have also posted on BITOG pictures of being at the rental agency and zero cars available.
But the very worse thing about rental vehicles is smell. Residual cigarette and cigar smoke is very common, along with other smells. And the chemicals they use to try and mask the smell adds insult to injury.
My car rentals are typically under 24 hours. Can't imagine being a smelly rental car for a 2,000 mile one way, 4,000 mile round trip.
I have posted on BITOG some of the pictures of waiting in line for rental cars. I have also posted on BITOG pictures of being at the rental agency and zero cars available.
But the very worse thing about rental vehicles is smell. Residual cigarette and cigar smoke is very common, along with other smells. And the chemicals they use to try and mask the smell adds insult to injury.
My car rentals are typically under 24 hours. Can't imagine being a smelly rental car for a 2,000 mile one way, 4,000 mile round trip.
A perfect segue for my anecdote.
A friend knew the mileage she'd put on her lease...down to the last foot.
Renting a car for the Detroit-UP-back was a no-brainer.
The company gave us a car with a horribly wobbly wheel.
I immediately bounced back and reported the problem and asked for a different vehicle.
I was told to go pound sand.
There were no other cars to be found anywhere...in Detroit, no less!
We were "helical threaded fastenered".
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
When you rent 100 cars a year for over 20 continual years, you quickly discover "if it smells, ask for another car" much easier said than done.
Of note, I am a top tier renter in multiple programs. For Avis I am a President Club member:
Avis President's Club is the highest status in the Avis program and is awarded after 20 rentals or $6,000 spent. Benefits of this level include: Free 2-car class upgrade when reserving a midsize or above (when available)
Why is it notable I am a President Club member. Getting vehicles with cigar smoke smell, marijuana smoke smell, cigarette smoke smell, bo smell, ---- no renter, regardless of how much money you spend, is immune from this.
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Patman
Staff member
I have never had a rental car in the last ten years that smelled like cigarettes. Most of those rentals were in Florida and almost every car was nearly brand new (under 5000 miles)
Zee09
$200 Site Donor 2023
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It's an American tradition
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
I just screen captured my past three rentals. Average mileage was 14,540. I am quite confident if I continued to pull up more receipts, that 14,540 would rise well over 20k.
With regards to your rentals, sometimes it's better to be an infrequent lucky renter than someone who rents vehicles all over the U.S. --sample size between a once in a blue moon renter and a very frequenter renter is wide.
Patman
Staff member
I've had your experience. Two times a year, no problems at pick-up or return. Low mileage cars in excellent condition.
Plus, does anyone here really listen to anything Gon states?......................He's an outlier ...."a person or thing situated away or detached from the main body or system."
Just messin' with you. LOL. We all love and respect our Gon (seriously) and a round of applause is appropriate.
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GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Actually you bring up a topic that could be a segway for a new thread:
Do some rental car markets get newer/ higher rotation of rental cars than other markets?
Lets look at Florida:
Florida has seen significant population growth, averaging between 300,000 and 380,000 new residents per year in the past decade.
Could this mean Florida is a great market to place new rental vehicles, with so many new residents every year, maybe selling used rental cars is more profitable than keeping rental cars longer, when compared to let's say Illinois, with over ten consecutive years of population decline (harder to sell used rental cars in quantity in Illinois when compared to Florida?).
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
No offense taken.Plus, does anyone here
I've had your experience. Two times a year, no problems at pick-up or return. Low mileage cars in excellent condition.
Plus, does anyone here really listen to anything Gon states?......................He's an outlier ...."a person or thing situated away or detached from the main body or system."
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Your reply might be considered passive aggressive by a licensed Behavorial Professional- but I am not one so I wouldn't know. I think a more accurate reply to my post might be "I don't rent cars often enough, at different times of the year, in different locations, at different pickup times, to know the holistic dynamics of what gets delivered to consumers of rental cars".
My 2007 F350 with a 5.4L 3v towed super heavy trailers coast to coast for 200k miles never had time chain/ cam phaser problems. Yet most every video on youtube states the 5.4 3v can't go 100k miles without timing chain/ cam phaser failure.
I suspect the macro assessment of the 5.4l 3v is much more accurate than my personal experience with a 5.4l 3v. In fact, I would not let a family member buy a vehicle with a 5.4l 3v Ford engine, yet I had a very good overall experience with the engine.
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Two years ago we rented a beach house for a week. Rural beach island, South Carolina. Beach front, sunrises over the waves from your window.
House had a downstairs apartment. Renter for the week was an elderly couple. They were trying to get in a few good vacations while they still had the physical ability. Dodge minivan. Busted a power steering hose right when they arrived. They spent most of their week dealing with tow truck to get the van repaired over an hour away, not able to visit places they wanted to go, go out to eat, etc. They wouldn't take us up on borrowing one of our cars.
Low mileage rental and they bring you a replacement if problems arise. Depends on how scarce your time away from work is and what the vacation is worth. If you have a mechanical does it ruin the road trip or make it more of an adventure?
House had a downstairs apartment. Renter for the week was an elderly couple. They were trying to get in a few good vacations while they still had the physical ability. Dodge minivan. Busted a power steering hose right when they arrived. They spent most of their week dealing with tow truck to get the van repaired over an hour away, not able to visit places they wanted to go, go out to eat, etc. They wouldn't take us up on borrowing one of our cars.
Low mileage rental and they bring you a replacement if problems arise. Depends on how scarce your time away from work is and what the vacation is worth. If you have a mechanical does it ruin the road trip or make it more of an adventure?
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